NEW YORK _ The Mets battery made it obvious it was the only unit well-rested for the team's home opener on Thursday afternoon at Citi Field.
Noah Syndergaard took a no-hitter into the sixth inning of the Mets' 4-0 loss against the Nationals. His catching partner, Wilson Ramos, ripped a single to left to break up Stephen Strasburg's no-hitter in the fifth.
That was just about all the offense the Mets could muster until Strasburg reached the end of his nine-strikeout start on Thursday.
Syndergaard flew out of Miami a day earlier than the rest of the team to grab shut-eye before facing the Nationals in his second start of the year. Ramos only caught the ninth inning of the team's 6-4 win over the Marlins on Wednesday and enjoyed resting for most of the day.
The rest of the Mets lineup looked sleepy at the plate. A prearranged plan of competing in a nine-inning game by relying on the fans' energy proved to be flawed.
"The good thing is we have the day off tomorrow," manager Mickey Callaway said before the game. "We can ride the adrenaline wave, the fans are going to bring the excitement and get us pumped up. We'll go out there and play the best we can."
The team was running on fumes after the last leg of a flawed travel schedule _ one that involved playing a 6 p.m. ET game in Miami the day before Thursday afternoon's home opener.
As if the quick turnaround wasn't already harsh enough, the Mets reached New York early Thursday morning even later than planned. Major League Baseball decided to drug test the team in Miami before getting on its charter flight to Queens.
The Mets finally arrived in New York around 2:30 a.m., less than eight hours before they reported to the clubhouse for home opener festivities.
Needless to say, the team's lack of sleep paired with travel pains contributed to the lack of runs against the Nationals.
The lineup tallied just three hits and struck out 13 times with 12 men left on base as Washington shut out the Mets on Thursday.
